There are a few meals I can say I’m making that will make my children excited (or pretend to be), and this is one of them.

Alongside there must be ‘pie insides’ (which is what my daughter has always called leeks in white sauce) and for ultimate gratification, roast potatoes. Although I usually use goose fat for roast potatoes, I feel the pork belly allows, indeed encourages, the substitution of lard. I’m not convinced that with all that fabulous crackling you do need roasties as well, but I like to provide what makes people happy. I actually prefer noodles or a bowl of plain, steamed brown basmati rice, and urge you to consider either; and I love to sprinkle a little rice vinegar on my own plate of pork as I eat.

This is another of those recipes that you can get done in advance and then have the afternoon off, unworried. I have advised an overnight marinade, but if I’m making this (as I tend to) for Sunday supper, I often prepare it in the morning and leave it in the fridge loosely covered with baking parchment, or midday-ish and leave it uncovered in a cold place (but not the fridge) for a few hours.

Rate this:

Share this:

Like this:

LikeLoading...

Related

Black Dogs Defined

This is the best of me; for the rest, I ate, and drank, and slept, loved and hated, like another: my life was as the vapour and is not; but this I saw and knew; this, if anything of mine, is worth your memory.

(John Ruskin, Sesame and Lilies)

Whatever people say I am, that’s what I’m not.

(Alan Sillitoe, Saturday Night and Sunday Morning)

This is my letter to the world, that never wrote to me.

(Emily Dickinson, This is my letter to the world)

Safe upon the solid rock the ugly houses stand:
Come and see my shining palace built upon the sand!

R.A.D. Stainforth

I was born before The Beatles’ first LP and brought up in the reeking slums of Jericho. I am in love with a woman called Hazel and in love with her daughter, also called Hazel, both of whom I met at Alcoholics Anonymous.

10 comments

The point of lining the roasting tin with foil is to save it should any of the marinade burn and turn to concrete. I use the foil that I’ve used to cover the meat overnight. I don’t cook the pork in the marinade, the recipe doesn’t say anything about transferring that bit to the roasting tin, perhaps I’m being a bit literal but it still turns out brilliantly.

Hi – I am about to cook this for dinner tonight. Thank you for answering my first question re whether or not to cook it in the marinade – I also wasn’t sure. My next question, is whether one really needs to line the roasting tin with foil? I’ve never roasted anything with the tin lined with foil and with a sticky marinade I worry that the foil will stick to the meat and then it will be a palaver to separate once it’s cooked. Couldn’t you simply use a little olive oil on the bottom of the roasting tin??

I cooked it in the marinade (well the marinade remained stuck to the meat)
Overall very good- except that the marinade burned slightly and I had to scrape off the really black bits – any tips ? The crackling was great- no oil, no salt , nothing added – but it was beautiful and the meat was so tender.